A petition to the Italian government (https://www NULL.openpetition NULL.eu/petition/online/cura-italia-relief-cant-forget-culture) launched in April by CEATL member Strade (http://www NULL.traduttoristrade NULL.it),
together with the translators’ associations AITI (https://aiti NULL.org/) and ANITI (https://www NULL.aniti NULL.it/) and the illustrators’ association AI – Autori di Immagini (http://www NULL.autoridimmagini NULL.it/), has achieved landmark results. On 16 October, the Italian Ministry of Culture announced that five million euros of Covid-19 emergency funding will be allocated specifically to literary translators (https://www NULL.beniculturali NULL.it/comunicato/editoria-franceschini-5-milioni-di-euro-per-i-traduttori) who meet eligibility requirements, with individual grants of up to €3,000. The petition, which was signed by authors from around the world, urged the government not to overlook the creative professions that were left out of initial relief measures. This appeal and other lobbying efforts began to bear fruit in June, when literary translators were included among those eligible for one-time assistance to cultural workers who derive their income from copyright. The new decree, however, is specifically aimed at translators who work in the publishing industry, and marks the first formal recognition of that profession by the Italian government.
